Long Term Athlete Development - Age

AGES 12 AND UNDER
Long Term Athlete
Development
LESSON WORKBOOK
DR. STEVE NORRIS
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Long Term Athlete Development
• Long term athlete development (LTAD) is a process that takes many years. It is non-linear and highly
individualized.
• LTAD is also an ongoing process that focuses on continual development of skills and continual understanding
of the game. Coaches in this process are ultimately preparing players to move up to the next stage of
development.
• Children are not miniature adults. A 6-year-old is not half of a 12-year-old or 1/3 of an 18-year-old. The overall
aspect of gathering experience over time is an important part of the developmental steps.
• A great challenge for coaches is to understand how difficult this process is. Athletes are dealing with massive
changes such as brain function, skill levels, social interaction capabilities and communication styles. The coach
has to manage all this in stride, while stressing hard work in a positive and encouraging environment.
Learn to Train Stage
• This is a crucial period of time for physical development, skill development and enhancement of fundamental
movement skills. Individual development within the team setting remains a major focus.
• Complementary sport participation is important while off-ice training plays a bigger role. Specializing or limiting
to one or two activities at this young age may actually limit the ultimate outcome and potential of the athlete.
In late specialization sports, most high performers do not specialize until the age of 14 or 15.
• Overall athleticism (agility, balance, coordination, speed) will support hockey-specific skills. By the end of this
stage, physical literacy should be developed allowing a seamless move to more advanced forms of training. • The use of age-appropriate equipment and playing surfaces should continue. Playing on a smaller surface will
lead to improved decision-making skills, increased speed of execution and development of spatial awareness.
• Time on task is very important for sport-specific (hockey) skills. Think about how much time your players are
active during a session. They need to be working with the puck and making decisions on the ice. Encourage
creativity while allowing your players to experiment with the puck.
• Gender differences become more pronounced during this stage of development. The gender split is related to growth
and maturity. Although rapid growth will occur in both genders, females are developmentally ahead of males.
Age Group Coaching
• The coach has a huge influence on athlete development.
• Encourage players to become better problem solvers. Player creativity through unstructured play can play a
large role.
• Think of the analogy of a skateboard park. There is often no coach and the main focus is fun. There is no
standard curriculum.
o There is heavy peer influence and the athletes learn through mimicry and peer demonstrations.
• Athlete development is about raising standards across the board for everyone involved.
o Program content is constantly being revised and enhanced.
o There is a high standard of athlete competency and rate of progress.
o Coaches are held to a high standard in delivering the proper messages.
o Parents should be educated accordingly.
o We all must raise our game! 3
Long Term Athlete Development
A PLAN FOR LONG-TERM ATHLETE DEVELOPMENT
The ADM was endorsed by the USA Hockey Board of Directors at its 2009 Winter Meeting and has also been
endorsed by the National Hockey League. The ADM furthers our growth and development efforts as it will provide
our member associations, for the first time ever, an optimal development blueprint for youth players that will lead to
a better experience for our current players and also help attract new players to our sport.
“It’s hard to put into words the excitement and buzz that has been and will continue to be generated by
this new initiative. It will take time for local associations around the country to educate their constituents
on the merits of adopting the American Development Model, but there’s no doubt that the principles of
the program are right for kids.”
— Ron DeGregorio, USA Hockey President
As Americans, we are a competitive people and our country places a tremendous importance on winning. In some
cases it is to our detriment, but there can be no doubt that our society rewards and cherishes excellence. In ice hockey,
we have grown from our seat at the kids’ table to one with the grown-ups. As a hockey nation we are now competitive
at every event that we enter. Yet for Americans, second
best has never been good enough. Our enrollment numbers
are the second most among all hockey-playing nations and
yet we have not grown into our full potential.
The developmental system in the U.S. has evolved over
time. Our current structure is not one that was planned;
it is one that evolved into a multi-faceted organization
with many different avenues. While diversity is one of our
great attributes as a nation, a clear pathway to excellence
has never been defined by USA Hockey. Over a decade
ago, to address some of the issues within our system,
USA Hockey took a bold step with the creation of the
National Team Development Program (NTDP). The NTDP
has raised the bar on elite player development within the
United States. Ten years ago one rarely heard the word
“development” within the hockey community, but now it is
the buzz word. The NTDP has played an important role as
we have grown into a challenger at each event. However,
as Americans we are not content with second place and it
is now time to move from challenger to champion.
Change is the only path that will move us towards our
goal. As the old saying goes, “If you always do what you
have always done, then you will always get what you
have always got.”
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Long Term Athlete Development
Rationale Behind the American Development Model
USA Hockey started with a review of research that has taken place in child and athletic development around the
globe. Elite performance studies from multiple sport bodies, governments as well as other endeavors such as music
and the arts were evaluated. Through the review of current research, it was quickly concluded that to truly address
player development, a completely new way of looking at USA Hockey’s structure must be undertaken. Critical
development begins at a very early age. As children mature, they each progress during the same developmental
stages through the growth and maturation process. Along this path, certain aspects of these stages must be
addressed at the appropriate time intervals. Without developing skills and certain physical and mental attributes at
the proper time, the long-term prospects of becoming a truly elite athlete are diminished.
Research has shown that we cannot just focus on a few older players; an encompassing strategy must be followed.
As we evaluated the current research, variations of Istvan Balyi’s long-term athlete development (LTAD) principles
are being employed around the globe by more than 100 government health ministries and sport National Governing
Bodies. Within hockey, there is no doubt that countries like Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic produce highend NHL players. Their numbers are especially impressive when one considers the populations and player numbers
from those counties. In each of those countries, long-term athlete development principles are at the core of their
development model.
Long-term athlete development is a generic, conceptual framework for athlete development in sport that can
be used as a basis on which to ‘re-align,’ or make more consistent, existing systems and structures. It has
been developed by Istvan Balyi, an internationally recognized coach educator, and is based upon a consensus
of evidenced research about how young people develop sporting ability, linking more closely the coaching and
development of players to their physical and psychological growth.
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Long Term Athlete Development
The ADM is a long-term athlete development plan for the sport of ice hockey. It takes into consideration the guiding
LTAD principles that are widely accepted around the globe. Consistent with LTAD, the ADM:
1. Integrates training, competition and recovery programming with relation to biological development
and maturation
2. Offers equal opportunity for recreation and competition
3. Is participant/athlete centered; coach driven; and parents, officials, administration, sport medicine
& sport science supported
It should be recognized that much of LTAD is nothing new. The majority of the research on which it is based is
widely accepted, and has been used to underpin physical education teaching for many years. The difference that
LTAD brings is a ‘packaging’ of this theory for mass understanding and a mechanism for applying the theory to
better integrate whole sports development systems (i.e. coaching, training, playing, competition, etc). It is also
important that our USA Hockey membership understand that it is not just our hockey people that endorse a LTAD
plan, but that sports science and development experts from around the globe endorse this model and are adopting
this methodology for their own sports.
All young people follow the same pattern of growth and development, although there are significant differences
between individuals in the timing and magnitude of these changes. In relation to physical activity, there are seven
key phases of growth and development. The relevant ‘stage’ of the LTAD hockey model for each phase of growth
and development is described below.
Early Childhood
Late Childhood
Adolescence
(Early Puberty)
Adolescence
(Late Puberty)
Early Adulthood
Early Adulthood
Adulthood
Active Start
FUNdamentals
Learn to Train
Males & Females 0-6 years
Males 6-9 & Females 6-8
Males 9-12 & Females 8-11
Train to Train
Males 12-16 & Females 11-15
Learn to Compete
Train to Compete
Train to Win
Males 16-18 & Females 15-18
Males 19-23 & Females 18-21
Males 19+ & Females 18+
LTAD Foundation of Research, Principles and Tools
Long-term athlete development has at its foundation 10 different elements of sport science and child
development research. When considering the structure of any athlete development program, these elements
must also be considered.
10 Year – 10,000 Hour Rule
It takes years of organized practice to become an expert performer. Research shows this is true of developing any
skill, such as learning to play an instrument or playing sport. This is sometimes referred to as the ‘10 year – 10,000hour rule’ relating to the need to practice for three hours a day for 10 years. Many researchers believe this is just a
minimum. The bottom line is that it takes an enormous amount of work and time to become an elite athlete. This is
done through a diverse sports movement and sports skills background. Once this foundation is laid, it takes years of
deliberate practice to develop an elite performer at the highest level.
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Long Term Athlete Development
A significant number of players that play in the NHL were never drafted. This means that,
at 18 and 19 years of age, nobody was even willing to take a late-round chance on their
potential to make it. Hockey is not an early specialization sport and our programs
must include a long-term developmental pathway that provides opportunities for our
elite players into their early 20s. This is why USA Hockey endorses the college hockey
path, as it provides the widest range of developmental opportunity over time. Many
players don’t reach their potential until their early to mid-20s.
FUNdamentals
All sports begin with basic fundamental movement and core sports
skills. The ABCs of movement include agility, balance, coordination
and speed, while core sports skills include running, jumping, skating
and throwing. It has been shown that children who have a strong, broad-based foundation in the fundamental
movements and sports skills from a variety of sports increase their potential for future success in sports. Whether
this is confidence to lead a healthy and active life in sport or to become an elite athlete, this strong foundation in
the fundamentals will help children reach their full potential. Without this foundation, children may never reach
their genetic capacity.
Specialization
Sports are classified as either early or late specialization sports. An
example of an early specialization sport is women’s gymnastics in which,
due to growth, girls are potentially retiring from their sport at 14, 15 or 16
years of age. As with other contact/collision sports, ice hockey is classified
as a late specialization sport. Hockey players don’t reach their full potential
until after full growth maturity. Specialization at an early age limits children
from acquiring a broad spectrum of athletic movements and skills that may
limit or put a cap on their overall athletic potential. When players specialize too
early they can create imbalances in musculature, increase the potential for burn
out and limit their athletic potential by not developing a broad base of athletic
movement skills.
“Young athletes who participate in a variety of sports have fewer
injuries and play sports longer than those who specialize before
puberty. Well-rounded, multi-sport athletes have the highest
potential to achieve.”
— Journal of American Academy of Pediatrics
AAP Guidelines:
• Encourage athletes to strive to have at least one to two days off per week
from competitive athletics, sports specific training and competitive practice (scrimmage) to allow them to
recover both physically and psychologically.
• Encourage the athlete to take at least two to three months away from a specific sport during the year.
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Long Term Athlete Development
Windows of Optimal Trainability
There are identifiable stages during a child’s physical and psychological development that offer optimum
opportunities to develop particular attributes, such as basic movement skills (agility, balance, coordination and
speed), basic sports skills (running, jumping, throwing, skating and striking) and physical capacities (flexibility,
endurance, and strength). Missing these optimum opportunities has been shown to significantly affect a child’s
ability to reach his or her full potential.
In our current system, training in early years focuses on outcomes (winning) rather than the developmental process
(optimal training). As Balyi states, “Damage done between ages 6-10 and 10-16 cannot be fully corrected (players/
athletes will never reach their genetic potential) and national training or sport centers receiving mediocre athletes,
regardless of funding and expertise, cannot recover from the ‘damages’ of earlier training.”
Elite player development and a sound structure at the 12 & Under level for broad-based skill development are not
mutually exclusive. What do we currently produce in the U.S.? We have an over abundance of average players and
very few truly elite players at the highest levels (NHL), especially when our numbers are taken into consideration.
This is due to a lack of the proper focus on training through the appropriate ‘windows of optimal trainability.’
Diagram 8-1 illustrates windows of optimal trainability for male and female athletes. These critical windows
provide accelerated adaptation to training and, if skipped or missed, decrease a child’s chance to reach his or her
full potential. It must be kept in mind that all systems are always trainable, yet with smaller degrees of adaptation
to training over time. In our current system, the window of opportunity on skills development (9-12) for male players
is missed through over-competition and under-training.
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Long Term Athlete Development
These critical periods vary between individuals as each child is unique in his or her genetic makeup. While these
critical periods follow general stages of human growth and maturation, scientific evidence shows that humans
vary considerably in the magnitude and rate of response to different training stimuli at all stages. Some players
may show potential for excellence at age 11, while others may not indicate their promise until age 15 or 16.
Consequently, a long-term approach to player development is needed to ensure that players who respond slowly to
training stimuli are not ‘shortchanged’ in their development.
The five trainable physical capacities and windows of optimal trainability are:
• Stamina (Endurance): The optimal window of trainability occurs at the onset of peak height velocity (PHV).
This is more commonly known as the adolescent growth spurt. Aerobic capacity training is recommended before
athletes reach PHV. Aerobic power should be introduced progressively after growth rate decelerates.
• Strength: The optimal window of trainability for girls is immediately after PHV or at the onset of the menarche,
while for boys it is 12-to-18 months after PHV.
• Speed: For boys, the first speed training window occurs between the ages of 7 and 9 years and the second
window occurs between the ages of 13 and 16. For girls, the first speed training window occurs between the
ages of 6 and 8 years and the second window occurs between the ages of 11 and 13 years.
• Skill: The window for optimal skill training for boys takes place between the ages of 9 and 12 and between the
ages of 8 and 11 for girls.
• Suppleness (Flexibility): The optimal window of trainability for suppleness for both genders occurs between
the ages of 6 and 10. Special attention should be paid to flexibility during PHV, due to rapid growth.
Additional capacities have been identified that must also be considered throughout an athlete’s development and, in
addition to the five physical capacities, make up a holistic approach to training.
• Structure/Stature: The height of a person before, during and after maturation can be utilized by a coach or
parent. Tracking growth as a guideline for developmental age can allow for planning to take advantage of the
critical ‘windows of optimal trainability.’
• Psychology: Sport is a physical and mental challenge. The ability to maintain high levels of concentration,
yet remain relaxed with the confidence to succeed, is a skill essential to long-term performance in sport.
This skill also has the potential to transcend sport and affect our everyday lives. To develop the mental
toughness for success at the highest levels, training programs are required that address the specific gender
and LTAD stage of players. The training programs should include key mental components identified by sport
psychologists: concentration, confidence, motivation and handling pressure. As a player progresses through
LTAD stages, the mental training aspect will evolve from having fun and respecting opponents; to visualization
and self-awareness; to goal setting, relaxation, and positive self-talk. To master the mental challenge of sport,
these basic skills are then tested in increasingly difficult competitive environments. Ultimately, the planning,
implementation and refining of mental strategies for high-level competition will have a large impact on elite
performance. Consequently, the mental training program is critical at all stages of LTAD, as dealing with
success and failure will determine continuation in the game and physical activity in general.
• Sustenance: This category refers to all aspects of replenishing the body for sports and general health. It
covers a wide range of topics from nutrition and hydration to rest and recovery. Fatigue, whether it comes from
a single practice/competition or builds up over time through a lengthy schedule, can be combated through a
proper lifestyle. Whether our children become elite athletes, or we look for better performance in school or
just to lead a healthier life, we will all thrive with better education and following a plan that replenishes our
physical and mental needs.
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Long Term Athlete Development
• School: Sports schedules must consider the demands placed upon children from an academic perspective.
Education must be emphasized, and the demands of sport should complement the academic schedule, not
conflict with it. The stress of class work, examinations, boyfriend and girlfriend issues, and school peer groups
play a role in the fatigue and stress levels on our athletes. Coaches and parents must monitor these factors to
balance the sports schedule to allow for maximum development both on the ice and in the classroom.
Biological Age vs. Chronological Age
Biological age should be considered through our development and identification process. As an example, one only
need look at the number of early month birth dates that make up our Under-17 and Under-18 National Teams. Our
current system forces players into a compete-to-win, ‘peak by the weekend’ system that rewards early maturing
players who may not have the ability to be elite performers. Late developing players are excluded and cut,
consequently leaving the sport or being segregated to a recreation program that limits their training opportunities.
These late developers may have huge long-term potential but are eliminated from our system.
Currently, most athletic training and competition programs are based on chronological age. However, athletes of
the same age between ages 10 and 16 can be four-to-five years apart developmentally. Thus, chronological age is a
poor guide to segregate adolescents for competitions. Because hockey is a contact sport, early maturing players are
favored within our youth structure. The late developer is eliminated when he or she may possess better long-term
athletic ability.
Looking at Diagram 8-2, it is obvious that in the Canadian developmental system and ours, potential late month
birth date players have been excluded from the high -performance track. It is highly unlikely that there are fewer
players with long-term athletic potential born in the last quarter of the year than in the first quarter.
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Long Term Athlete Development
“Training Age” refers to the age at which athletes begin planned, regular, serious involvement in training. The
tempo of a child’s growth has significant implications for athletic training because children who mature at an early
age have a major advantage during the Training to Train stage compared to average or late maturers. However, after
all athletes have gone through their growth spurt, it is often later maturers who have greater potential to become
top athletes provided that they experience quality coaching throughout that period (see Diagram 8-3).
Not all players have the potential to become elite players. The American Development Model recognizes this by
offering two levels of content from the Train to Train stage forward. The high performance content is aimed at
those players who have been identified and who choose to attempt to be potential elite performers, while the
standard content offers a reduced level of commitment more appropriate to the majority of players who will form
the basis of club teams of the future. The split between the levels of content at the early part of the Train to Train
stage are relatively small as it is deemed to be such an important stage in developing a broader base of potential
elite players. However, the differentiation between hockey and other sports may necessitate the divergence at this
stage. It is important to note that research suggests that there can be numerous players who follow the standard
track through the Train to Train and into the Train to Compete stages who will have the potential to become elite
performers. This is especially true if they have a diverse sports movement background through playing multiple
sports during the FUNdamemtal and Learn to Train stages.
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Long Term Athlete Development
Periodization
Periodization is the practice of segmenting the calendar year into appropriate time intervals for preparation,
competition and rest and recovery. Athletes at different stages of their development require different training plans
to optimize their development through their growth and maturation. The science behind periodization has been used
on the international stage with great success in many, many sports. Unfortunately, sometimes a sport’s traditions
are placed in front of the athlete’s needs when planning a periodization schedule. This has an impact on maximizing
the player’s development.
The Great One’s Message to Parents: Let Your Kids Have Fun
“In youth hockey, in most cases, it’s really important for kids to play other sports, whether it’s indoor
lacrosse or soccer or baseball. I think what that does is two things. One, each sport helps the other sport.
And then I think taking time off in the off-season - that three or four month window really rejuvenates kids
so when they come back at the end of August, they’re more excited. They think, ‘All right, hockey’s back,
I’m ready to go.’” — Wayne Gretzky.
Gretzky was a multi-sport athlete himself growing up, as he also excelled in baseball and lacrosse, quoted from
“Great One’s Message to Parents: Let Your Kids Have Fun” (Globe and Mail, 9/26/2008 – Eric Duhatschek).
Training to Competition Ratios
Through a child’s growth and maturation, the athletic development model needs change through different stages.
The appropriate training-to-competition ratios need to be adhered to in order to maximize a player’s time and
potential. When a heavy emphasis is placed on competition at an early age, two situations occur. First, ice time
is directed toward games, which reduces the amount of quality deliberate practice time. And second, the focus
becomes more outcome based (winning) and less process driven (learning the game). There are all kinds of
arguments put forth as to why we must allow the imbalance in our training-to-competition ratios to continue, and
certainly the one-to-one ratio has its place within the recreational Hockey for Life track. However, for our Tier I, Tier
II and high performance players that are part of our elite development path, the correct ratios must be adhered to at
the appropriate ages.
System Alignment
The framework for long-term athlete development is influenced by many factors. We have clubs, schools and ice
arena facilities all with varying interests. To maximize a player’s development needs, it is important those entities
work together and become mutually supportive as each has its part to play in advancing our game. Players will best
develop in a system that is clearly defined, logically structured and based upon consistent principles. We need a
structure that is athlete centered and looks at the individual player’s development.
In a team sport, it is appropriate to look at the collective whole and to provide the direction and lessons that only a
team sport can provide. However, we must always consider that each individual is at a different point through the
stages of his or her development (early maturer or late maturer, for example). The goal is to define our sports system
with a pathway that addresses the needs of each individual and maximizes their development as they progress
through our system. The LTAD principles show us that at the earlier ages, both the Hockey for Life group and the
ones that end up as high-performance player, should initially be held to the same pathway. Our current sport system
mistakenly allows for the separation of the perceived Hockey for Life group and the perceived high-performance
group before any reliable determination can possibly be made. To maximize each player’s potential, we need the
major parties to re-evaluate current practices and base new practices on current legitimate research instead of
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Long Term Athlete Development
commonly held beliefs in sports myths and the old “that’s the way it has always been done” attitude.
Physical, Mental, Cognitive and Emotional Development
Training should consider the mental, cognitive and emotional development of the athlete, in addition to the physical,
technical and tactical (including decision making skills) components of development.
A major objective of LTAD is a holistic approach. This includes ethics, fair play and character building through the
various stages. Programming should be designed to consider the athlete’s cognitive ability to address these concepts.
Continuous Improvement
Continuous improvement is a key underlying principle of long-term athlete development. This ensures that we
are always evaluating our sport and are readily able to respond and implement new sports science innovations
and observations. LTAD provides a continuously evolving vehicle for change for all emerging facets of physical
education, sport and recreation to ensure systematic and logical delivery of programs to all ages.
Long-Term Goals for USA Hockey and the ADM
USA Hockey has a core goal to grow the game of ice hockey within the United States. We believe that the ADM will
provide a pathway to excellence for those who have the ability, as well as a greater overall hockey experience for
all of our players. The LTAD principles on which our model is founded address the core needs of all of our players.
Along with the National Hockey League, USA Hockey has the mutual goal of seeing more American players
compete at the highest level of the game.
LTAD Stages for the American Development Model
See the individual LTAD stages of development for specifics to the American Development Model.
• Active Start
• FUNdamentals
• Learn to Train
• Train to Train
• Learn to Compete
• Train to Compete
• Train to Win
• Hockey for Life
Special acknowledgement goes to LTAD expert, Istvan Balyi and Canadian Sport For Life. The two have been the
principal developers of LTAD.
LTAD Expert Group:
1. Istvan Balyi, M.A., Pacific Sport Canadian Sport Centre Vancouver
2. Charles Cardinal, M.Sc en Activité Physique, Canadian Sport Centre, Montreal
3. Colin Higgs, Ph.D., Memorial University of Newfoundland
4. Steve Norris, Ph.D., Canadian Sport Centre, Calgary
5. Richard Way, MBA, Pacific Sport Canadian Sport Centre Victoria
6. Mary Bluechardt, Ph.D., Memorial University of Newfoundland
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Long Term Athlete Development
NOTEPAD:
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